MEXICOWANDERER On Top Charging New Flooded Batteries
EDIT: It appears that things are even worse than expected. MEX was busy, so I found the answer my dang self.
Simply put... you can buy a brand new battery from a reputable company, with a brand new date code... that may be charged only 85% of capacity... which then may have hardened sulfate that may never come off without knowledge and effort.
Using a highly respected, Vector/Black & Decker 1093DBD charger, upon return home from the store, I topped a brand new pair of Duracell GC2s and then hit them with an equalizing charge at 15.9v until completion.
This got the jars to a specific gravity of 1.275 at 60F.
It took me something like a dozen+ more auto-equalization sessions plus one hard, 3 hour session with an 18A manual charger before the specific gravity settled in at 1.300 at 57F. From there we can extrapolate a temperature adjusted SG of about 1.291 at 80F.
So I have confirmed MEX’s information. At least when it comes to this “big” sample of 2 batteries. Read on…
Original Post:
At the bottom of this post, in bold, is a quote from MEX on the subject. If you're not already familiar with the protocol, I do suggest reading it. He has a strong opinion about it... (which is "way" out of character for ol' MEX. :) )
I'm going to see if I can get him to clarify a little bit on just how hard they should be "top charged."
MEX,
The batteries - 2-Duracell (Deka) GC15 6V, 230 Ah, 64 lb Golf Cars
Upon returning home with the new batteries, I auto-charged them with my temp-compensating, 40A Vector / Black & Decker on the 40A setting. At 40F ambient, it took about 5 minutes to go from Bulk to Absorption at 14.9v. I didn't keep track, but it took maybe 6 hours or so to complete the charge at that voltage.
I then used the relatively mild, temp-compensated, auto-equalize setting with a built-in 4 Amp max. After several hours, the current began to taper at a voltage of 15.9 until current tapered to zero and completion.
Results - SG of 1.275 @ 60F in all but one cell which was 1.285. (stored in the garage a few days on float, which brought them to that temperature before testing.) Just seemed a little on the low end to me for 6v, "high acid" batteries. I get higher numbers from my hybrid 27s.
Note: Following the auto-equalization, my little $10 HF Float Charger, with but a 500mA / 15v transformer and a peak voltage of something like 14.08 was able to get the 2 batteries to 14.00 within a day. They were bubbling a little bit, which surprised me, to some bit of chagrin. Not sure I should leave that float charger on 'em 24/7 through perpetuity... especially indoors in the garage.
So am I done? Is that considered a "Top Charge?"
Or should I hit them with the "The Beast" for awhile and resample the electrolyte? ("The Beast" being the heavy Harbor Freight unit that you and I have... which I run switched to the "Start" setting for hard equalizing at 10A... which was shown to be closer to 20 upon testing)
MEXICOWANDERER on Top Charging New Batteries
"Call a golf course if not closed and ask the PRO where they buy their batteries. Freshness matters.
Upon bringing them home give them a TOP CHARGE then let them sit overnight before cycling them. TOP CHARGING adds significant improvement to overall battery life. Not hype or myth. This is a proven discipline.
To save money battery manufacturers are forced to squeeze post greening activation charging to an absolute minimum. If top charge is used prior to first use it conditions the plates. Commercial rate electricity every cent saved is crucial.
Let the batteries rest 24 hours after top charging. This is vital to saturate the positive plates.
Batteries are chemical devices that exhibit curious electrical properties"
.
Simply put... you can buy a brand new battery from a reputable company, with a brand new date code... that may be charged only 85% of capacity... which then may have hardened sulfate that may never come off without knowledge and effort.
Using a highly respected, Vector/Black & Decker 1093DBD charger, upon return home from the store, I topped a brand new pair of Duracell GC2s and then hit them with an equalizing charge at 15.9v until completion.
This got the jars to a specific gravity of 1.275 at 60F.
It took me something like a dozen+ more auto-equalization sessions plus one hard, 3 hour session with an 18A manual charger before the specific gravity settled in at 1.300 at 57F. From there we can extrapolate a temperature adjusted SG of about 1.291 at 80F.
So I have confirmed MEX’s information. At least when it comes to this “big” sample of 2 batteries. Read on…
Original Post:
At the bottom of this post, in bold, is a quote from MEX on the subject. If you're not already familiar with the protocol, I do suggest reading it. He has a strong opinion about it... (which is "way" out of character for ol' MEX. :) )
I'm going to see if I can get him to clarify a little bit on just how hard they should be "top charged."
MEX,
The batteries - 2-Duracell (Deka) GC15 6V, 230 Ah, 64 lb Golf Cars
Upon returning home with the new batteries, I auto-charged them with my temp-compensating, 40A Vector / Black & Decker on the 40A setting. At 40F ambient, it took about 5 minutes to go from Bulk to Absorption at 14.9v. I didn't keep track, but it took maybe 6 hours or so to complete the charge at that voltage.
I then used the relatively mild, temp-compensated, auto-equalize setting with a built-in 4 Amp max. After several hours, the current began to taper at a voltage of 15.9 until current tapered to zero and completion.
Results - SG of 1.275 @ 60F in all but one cell which was 1.285. (stored in the garage a few days on float, which brought them to that temperature before testing.) Just seemed a little on the low end to me for 6v, "high acid" batteries. I get higher numbers from my hybrid 27s.
Note: Following the auto-equalization, my little $10 HF Float Charger, with but a 500mA / 15v transformer and a peak voltage of something like 14.08 was able to get the 2 batteries to 14.00 within a day. They were bubbling a little bit, which surprised me, to some bit of chagrin. Not sure I should leave that float charger on 'em 24/7 through perpetuity... especially indoors in the garage.
So am I done? Is that considered a "Top Charge?"
Or should I hit them with the "The Beast" for awhile and resample the electrolyte? ("The Beast" being the heavy Harbor Freight unit that you and I have... which I run switched to the "Start" setting for hard equalizing at 10A... which was shown to be closer to 20 upon testing)
MEXICOWANDERER on Top Charging New Batteries
"Call a golf course if not closed and ask the PRO where they buy their batteries. Freshness matters.
Upon bringing them home give them a TOP CHARGE then let them sit overnight before cycling them. TOP CHARGING adds significant improvement to overall battery life. Not hype or myth. This is a proven discipline.
To save money battery manufacturers are forced to squeeze post greening activation charging to an absolute minimum. If top charge is used prior to first use it conditions the plates. Commercial rate electricity every cent saved is crucial.
Let the batteries rest 24 hours after top charging. This is vital to saturate the positive plates.
Batteries are chemical devices that exhibit curious electrical properties"
.
